http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxAD4MNr6RA
– Robbie Lawler will try to get right back into title contention in the UFC’s welterweight division when he meets Jake Ellenberger this Saturday night at UFC 173: Barao vs. Dillashaw. Check out the segment featuring Lawler and Ellenberger from “Countdown to UFC 173” in the video above.
Lawler (22-10) haad his three-fight win streak snapped by Johny Hendricks in March, losing via decision in a bout to crown a new welterweight champion. Prior to the defeat, “Ruthless” had picked up wins over Rory MacDonald, Bobby Voelker and Josh Koscheck.
Ellenberger (29-7) hasn’t fought since a decision loss to MacDonald last July. He is 7-2 in his last nine overall, including victories vs. Diego Sanchez, Nate Marquardt and Jake Shields.
WrestlingInc.com will have live coverage of UFC 173 this Saturday night, including play-by-play of the main card.
– Some feel Matt Brown should be the next contender to the UFC welterweight title after stringing together a seven-fight win streak. Hector Lombard is not one of those people.
Lombard, a former Bellator champion, recently defeated Jake Shields to improve to 3-2 with the promotion and 34-4-1 overall. Many have mentioned a possible Brown-Lombard fight as a strong candidate for later this year.
On Twitter recently, Lombard stated his displeasure with Brown’s win streak, saying, “Never fought a Former Champion or a top 10 guy and getting all the hype not impressed by you (Matt Brown).”
With many of the top contenders at 170 pounds locked up or injured, the possibility we see Brown-Lombard appears to be very good.
– The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America will air on UFC Fight Pass beginning this August. The season features heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum as head coaches. The two will meet at UFC 180 from Mexico City later this year.
“I’ve been waiting 15 years for this,” UFC president Dana White said. “Passion for fighting is unrivaled in Latin America. It’s part of their history and their culture. There’s a lot of potential in this season’s cast and I know they’re going to bring it every fight. Adding a little extra rivalry – pitting Mexico versus the rest of Latin America – doesn’t hurt either.”
Velasquez will lead bantamweights Marco Beltran, Henry Briones, Alejandro Dominguez and Jose Quinonez, along with featherweights Gabriel Benitez, Masio Fullen, Yair Rodriguez and Rodolfo Rubio. For Werdum, his bantamweights are Guido Cannetti, Fredy Serrano, Bentley Syler and Marlon Vera, along with featherweights Humberto Brown, Leonardo Morales, Diego Rivas and Alex Torres.
